pols 2000 midterm ch 5-9 terms

aristocracy

A wealthy landowning elite

confederal system

A system in which the local governmental units have all the real power

democracy

Rule by the people, usually through elected representatives, under a constitution that provides protection for basic rights and majority rule

dictatorship

A form of government in which power is centralized in a single person or possibly a small group of people

federal system

A system in which the final authority for at least some aspects of government are left to the local or subnational level

institution

An organizational structure through which political power is exercised

oligarchy

Government by the few, especially for corrupt and selfish purposes

political culture

The shared social context from which people make political choices

polity

Constitutional government that is a mixture of democracy and oligarchy

republic

A government in which decisions are made by representatives of the citizens rather than by the citizens themselves; also refers to a country without a monarch or an authoritarian leader

structures

Basic elements that governments need in order to govern that determine, enable, and limit how the particulars of the government take shape

unitary system

A system in which sovereignty and authority rest quite clearly with the national government

checks and balances

A system whereby each branch of government can limit the powers of the other branches

divine right of kings

The principle that earthly rulers receive their authority from God

Electoral College

An election system in which electoral votes are divvied between the states according to population

head of government

The political role of a country’s president or ruler as the leader of a political party or group and chief arbiter of who gets what resources

head of state

The apolitical, unifying role of a country’s president or ruler as a symbolic representative of the whole country

hereditary monarchy

The most common form of monarchy, used by almost all of the world’s existing monarchies; under a hereditary monarchy, all rulers come from the same family, and the crown is passed along from one family member to another

matriarchy

A form of social organization in which the mother is recognized as the head of the family or tribe and descent and kinship are traced through the mother’s side

monarchy

An authoritarian government with power vested in a king or queen

parliamentary system

A system in which there is a fusion of legislative and executive institutions

patriarchy

A form of social organization in which the father is recognized as the head of the family or tribe and descent and kinship are traced through the father’s side

presidency

An executive institution that includes all formal and informal powers—the offices, the staffs, and the historical precedents that define it

presidential system

A system in which there is a separation between legislative and executive institutions

prime minister

A member of parliament, who, as the leader of the winning party in the parliament, exercises some of the functions of a chief executive

separation of powers

A system designed so that no one branch of government can become too powerful over the others

bicameral legislature

A legislature with two houses

cohabitation

Under the French political system, when the president is from one political party while a different political party controls the legislature

delegate

A representative who attempts to do exactly what their constituents want

divided government

When one political party controls the presidency and another party controls either all or part of the legislature

filibuster

A delaying tactic used by a senator or a group of senators in which they indefinitely talk about a bill in order to frustrate the proponents of the bill and ensure defeat of the measure

first-past-the-post system

An electoral system in which the candidate with the most votes wins regardless of whether that person has a majority of the votes cast; there is no runoff election

geographic representation

A legislature divided according to geography; people are represented by the area they live in

gerrymandering

The process of intentionally drawing districts to gain a partisan advantage

gridlock

When the checks and balances within the presidential system work so well that they not only prevent one institution from overwhelming the others but also prevent anyone from doing much of anything

ideological representation

Representation in which people’s belief is the main concern of leadership

immobilism

When, because of the complexity and fragility of a ruling coalition, it becomes nearly impossible to enact any kind of coherent policies out of fear that a coalition party will break away and force the government to collapse

imperial presidency

The accumulation of tremendous power in the presidency at the expense of the other branches of government, especially the legislative branch

minority government

When the majority party does not share power with any other party but relies on an agreement that states another party will provide support or will abstain from voting if there is ever a no-confidence vote

multiparty system

A system composed of multiple, distinct, and officially recognized groups, otherwise known as political parties

policy stability

When the social and economic environments within the country tend to be very consistent over time

politicos

People who are active in party politics

pork barrel politics

Occur when representatives use their political office to bring federal money to their districts through projects and jobs

proportional representation

A system in which there is representation of all parties in a legislature in proportion to their popular vote

shadow government

A type of oversight performed in a parliamentary system by those members of the minority party who would take the office if that party were to capture the majority

trustee

A country or government charged with the oversight of a trust territory

two-party system

A system that favors moderate political parties that can create coalitions to gain sizable numbers of voters

unicameral legislature

A legislature with one house

unity government

When the two major parties, though in opposition, work together to achieve a higher national purpose

vote of no confidence

A parliamentary device by which the government can be dissolved by a simple majority vote of the legislature

agency theory

Also called the principal–agent model, the basic premise is that bureaucracies are agents that act on behalf of the legislature—the principal, or “client”—in a relationship similar to a business contract

authority leakage

When the distortions created by communication down a chain of command make it impossible to control those who act

bureaucracy

The position within the political administrative structure—the desk, not the person—that defines the role or function to be performed

cockroach theory of bureaucracy

The idea that bureaucracies serve the public as best as they can and hope to stay hidden from the media and well fed in the darker recesses of an anonymous bureaucratic government

iron triangle

The situation in which the bureaucracy is captured and redirected to focus on the needs of an interest group rather than on the public interest or even its original mandate

overhead democracy

A system of government in which elected officials—who are periodically held accountable to the desires of the voting public—are put at the top of the bureaucratic hierarchy or are otherwise entrusted with mechanisms that allow them to effectively control the unelected portions of the government

principal–agent model

Also called agency theory, the basic premise that bureaucracies are agents that act on behalf of the legislature—the principal, or “client”—in a relationship similar to a business contract

appellate jurisdiction

A higher court’s authority to review the record from a trial court

civil law

The branch of law that typically deals with relations among private individuals and groups

civil law system

A system of law based on the proposition that law is a codified, constructed entity that a legislature or some other lawmaking political body has constructed

common law system

A law system characterized by the strong role of the judge in cases and the importance of precedent

criminal law

The branch of law that concerns the government and its relationships with individuals and organizations

dispute resolution

The role of courts to peacefully settle disputes and keep order in society

federal law

The law of the national government

going rate

When judges, through past sentencing, set the context for plea bargaining, which occurs when defense attorneys and prosecutors negotiate the appropriate penalty for an offense for which a plaintiff pleads guilty

injunctive power

The power of courts to stop governments, individuals, or groups from acting

inquisitorial system

In a civil law system, a prolonged pretrial investigative process

judicial review

The power to declare laws and government acts to be in violation of the nation’s constitution or in some other way illegal under the structure of the country

jurisprudence

A philosophy of law

law in action

How laws are applied and enforced in the real world

law in books

The laws as they are written

legal system

A social construction built upon a basic conceptualization of how the law is created and how it functions

natural law

A type of jurisprudence that presumes that there is some higher law, which originates with God or nature, that is discoverable by the use of reason

original jurisdiction

A court’s authority to be the first tribunal to hear a case

positivist jurisprudence

A type of jurisprudence that views law as simply the command or will of the recognized sovereign authority of the state

private law

Law that is concerned with the relations among private individuals and private organizations

public law

Law that concerns relationships involving the government and its relationship with individuals and organizations

sharia

The system of Islamic law

state law

The law of the states and their localities

statutory interpretation

When courts must interpret what a law precisely means to maintain specificity